The older brother of Vice President Mike Pence officially formed the Greg Pence for Congress Committee on Monday, indicating his intention to run for his brother's former congressional seat.
Greg Pence filed the tax document, obtained by the Associated Press, indicating he is likely to form a campaign committee to run for Indiana's sixth congressional district. Republican donors have previously encouraged Pence to run for his brother's old seat representing the district, which contains the towns of Columbus and Muncie, as well as some suburbs of Cincinnati and Indianapolis.
Pence has served as the statewide finance chairman for Rep. Luke Messer (R., Ind.), the current holder of the seat who is now running for the U.S. Senate. He took the job under Messer this year, and has been rumored as a potential replacement for his current boss who replaced Mike Pence as the district's congressional representative in 2013.
"When you're looking for a candidate to recruit, you want somebody with an ability to raise money, somebody who has name recognition, somebody who fits well with the district, and those things would seem to characterize Greg Pence if he were to choose to run," Robert Dion, a political scientist at the University of Evansville, told the Indianapolis Star in June.
Greg Pence, the oldest of six siblings, has been a close confidant of his younger brother Mike, and frequently traveled with him during the presidential campaign. He currently owns antique malls in the district with his wife Denise, and years ago, he ran a chain of family-owned convenience stores that have since gone bankrupt.
A Republican fundraiser and major player in Indiana politics, Bob Grand, told the AP in June that Pence has the qualities of a strong candidate.
"He's a community leader, he's been involved in this community, he's obviously got good name ID," Grand said. "I think all those things are positive."